This is how the new Castellana subway will work

A few days ago we knew that Madrid it was over with one of the key phases of the burial of the north of Paseo de la Castellana. This is the excavation of the tunnel that will connect the M-30 with the surroundings of the Four Towers, ending after the demolition of the last wall that separated both ends of the work. The mayor, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, present at the time along with the delegate of Works and Equipment, Paloma García Romero, assured that the infrastructure, 675 meters long, will be ready for vehicles to circulate. starting in december.

A tunnel with AI. The capital already has more than 40 kilometers of underground traffic galleries, but everything indicates that this will be the most technologically advanced. And unlike passageways like those of the M-30 under Madrid Río, which have been built for almost 20 years, the new tunnel will incorporate technology based on artificial intelligence to monitor and manage in real time everything that happens inside.

What AI will do. The idea is that the system is trained to identify vehiclescontrol the speed at which they circulate, detect incidents or violations and monitor the polluting emissions generated inside the tunnel. This information will also allow the ventilation of the gallery to be automatically adjusted based on the level of pollution detected at all times, thus optimizing air quality without the need for manual intervention.

Between the lines. The goal is for the tunnel to function as a self-regulating system. The more data you collect about traffic and pollution, the more accurately you can anticipate problems, from a traffic jam to a broken down vehicle, before they become a risk to those driving inside.

According to sources collected by The reasonthis commitment also seeks to provide the tunnel with the highest safety standards. And along with all its AI, the infrastructure will also have improved emergency exit systems and Wi-Fi coverage.

What will it be like inside? The tunnel will have three lanes in each direction, not counting the accesses, exits and links with roads such as the M-30, the M-607, the A-1 or the M-11. The route will connect the current underpass on Sinesio Delgado Street, in the south, with the North Nude, next to the La Paz Hospital. Furthermore, according to they count from ABC, it has been designed on two levels to minimize the impact on the trees that exist right now, thus conserving the greatest number of specimens, especially the largest conifers.

And now what. This summer, excavation will begin on the second level of the tunnel, an extension that in the future will connect La Castellana with the Begoña neighborhood and with the new Madrid Nuevo Norte district. For now the infrastructure will be prepared, but it will not come into operation until that connection arrives.

Meanwhile, on the surface the construction of Parque Castellana is progressing, a green area of ​​70,000 square meters with more than 1,500 trees, a large jet fountain and a 35-meter-high pergola covered with solar panels that, according to explained Almeida, will serve to “guarantee that at all times there is an adequate supply” of energy for vehicles traveling through the tunnel. The idea is that, when everything is finished, only public transport and local traffic accessing the buildings in the area will circulate on the surface.

Cover image | Madrid City Council

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